Former Alpine executive director Marcin Budkowski has backed Oscar Piastri to start "looking elsewhere" should in-team fighting continue at McLaren this year.
Piastri lost out to McLaren team-mate Lando Norris in the drivers’ title last season, despite having held a 34-point advantage after the Dutch Grand Prix.
A staggering drop-off in form across Azerbaijan, Austin, Mexico City and São Paulo saw Piastri slip to third by the end of the 2025 campaign, with Max Verstappen splitting the McLarens.
The latter stages of last year saw an increase in incidents between Piastri and Norris, with the pair making contact in Singapore and Austin.
While Piastri rediscovered his form in the final two rounds, he left himself too far adrift to overcome his team-mate and become world champion.
A big question heading into the new season is whether it will be Piastri’s last with McLaren — something Budkowski believes could be the case if tension with Norris continues or the Woking-based outfit falls backwards.
Discussing if Piastri could look to leave McLaren, Budkowski said on a recent RacingNews365 Podcast episiode: "I think the Oscar camp is less happy than the Lando camp, and obviously that’s not going to change after the championship.
"But the reality is, would you leave a double world championship team with a Mercedes engine at the back? Probably not.
"I think it will be a question of how 2026 pans out. If there’s either a lack of competitiveness on McLaren’s side, or more in-team fighting between Oscar and Lando, then I can see Oscar looking elsewhere.
"I’m sure Mark Webber has already started this conversation, which is normal — that’s his job as a manager — but there will be opportunities for Oscar, and there will be a time to consider them. For now, I think it’s too early.
"I think everybody is in a waiting position, waiting to see what’s going on in 2026. That question will probably arise towards the middle of the season for Oscar and his entourage."
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